Paris Parks begin Winter Hours

Walking through Square Louis XIII (also known as Place des Vosges), my short cut route was cut short. The route became the long way around! The corner where I usually exit was already locked! And then I heard a hint of why.

“Le square ferme. Mesdames, Messieurs et Mesdemoiselles*, le square ferme,” he called out. To my surprise the 7:30 pm closing time was no longer; it was now 5:45 pm! The majority of Paris park changed to winter time when the clocks fell back an hour. They are losing their leaves and we lost an hour.

Of the 490 parks in Paris, a quarter are open 24 hours a day. For the others, their opening and closing times vary with the seasons. Read the sign at your favorite park or visit the Paris Mayor’s office “Les parcs et jardins” page for a listing of the parks and their running timetable of park hours. They also have a list and a map on another page.

What the sign says

Winter Hours at Square Louis XIII and its history

The history of Square Louis-XIII
1682
After the death of Henry II (1519-1559), Catherine de Medici abandoned the Tournelles Palace. A horse market temporarily occupied the northern part of the palace. Henry IV, concerned about the economy, instructed that a silk factory be built to house merchants and their shops under the arcades.
To save money, the facades were made of wood and plaster imitating brick and stone.
Louis XIII originally named the park Place Royale (1601-1643) in celebration of his wedding to Anne of Austria (1601-1666) in 1615.

In 1682, the first fence-enclosed garden was built and then fell victim to the French Revolution. In the 19th century, Jean-Pierre Cortot (1787-1843) constructed four fountains based on designs by Jean Mènager. The equestrian statue of Louis XIII stands at the center, the work of Charles Dupaty (1771-1825).
In 1799 the park became known as Place des Vosges in honor of the first department to pay their taxes.

*In doing some checking, the proper order is Mesdames, mesdemoiselles, messieurs…Linguée